Border Security: The Bright, Shining Lie

Border Security: The Bright, Shining Lie

Senator Reid’s delusional statement that the border is secure is manifestly ridiculous, requiring no rebuttal. But the contradictory contention contemporaneously trotted out by amnesty proponents — that the present crisis would’ve been avoided had comprehensive immigration reform (i.e., the Gang of Eight Bill) been passed — benefits from the fact that almost no one has read the monstrous and opaque bill.

To members of Congress and the media: Read the bill. The assertion that passage of comprehensive immigration reform would’ve prevented the massive influx of illegal immigrants is a lie wrapped in a sham inside a farce. There is no border security before amnesty in the Gang of Eight bill. It’s an utter mirage. The bill merely requires the DHS Secretary to present a plan to secure the border, and the bill’s enforcement mechanisms are even weaker than security requirements in previous immigration bills.

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The border-security metrics in the bill invest so much discretion in the DHS Secretary as to be meaningless. As Senator Ted Cruz said to then DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano during last year’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on comprehensive immigration reform, “Madame Secretary, it seems to me that if border security is to be measured by an amorphous, multi-factor, subjective test, that this committee knows to a metaphysical certainty that DHS will conclude that border security is satisfied.” Precisely right.

Indeed, even when congressmandated (pursuant to the Secure Border Act of 2006) that 700 miles of double-layered fencing be built along the southwestern border, the requirements were evaded, diluted, and ignored. By last year, only 36–42 miles of double-layered fencing had been erected.

In 2011, more than 7,500 individuals from countries identified as state sponsors of terror or that harbor significant terrorist elements were apprehended along the southwestern border. The countries included Iran, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Libya, Yemen, Pakistan, and Somalia. Last year, well before the current surge in illegal immigrants, the Congressional Research Service reported, “Terrorist and terrorist organizations could leverage [smuggling networks] to smuggle a person or weapons of mass destruction into the United States, while the large number of illegal aliens attempting to enter the country illegally could potentially provide cover for terrorists.” (Emphasis added.) Obviously, that ”large number” of illegal aliens has gotten even larger since issuance of the report.

While open-borders proponents peddle delusions and falsehoods, the harsh reality is that the refusal of the federal government to protect our sovereignty is putting Americans in multiple forms of jeopardy.

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